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During the dinosaur age, azhdarchid pterosaurs, soaring reptiles that could grow as large as aeroplanes, supported their absurdly long necks and large heads during flight thanks to a never-before-seen internal bone structure in their neck vertebrae. This unique structure, which looks like the spokes on a bicycle wheel, allowed the largest pterosaurs, such as Quetzalcoatlus northropi, which had a wingspan of more than ten metres, to fly with necks that were even longer than a giraffe’s neck.